Sunday, July 30, 2017

Vanished tool makers: Whitehouse hammers

Above, a cross-pein hammer in my shop. Originally, I thought it was made by Cornelius Whitehouse & Sons. The closest match in the company's 1952 catalogue is for the 360R, a Joiner's hammer:

Often also referred to as a Warrington hammer, over here, we'd call it a cabinet maker's hammer. One writer suggests that the cross-pein on it was probably principally intended for straightening bent nails, something just about no one does today.Cornelius Whitehouse & Sons was founded in 1869 and operated out of Cannock, Staffordshire, about 20 miles northwest of Birmingham. At its height, the company employed more than 300 workers making "Hedgehog" brand tools, and making a particular name for itself with heavy edged tools. It folded in 1964, just shy of its centenary, under pressure from cheaper foreign imports. In 2016, the Cannock Edge Tool Works was bulldozed to make room for 40 houses. The two photos below are from the Express and Star.

A visitor pointed out that my hammer is actually a product of W. Whitehouse, a completely different British manufacturer of striking and hand tools. Oops! There's very little information online about this firm. William Whitehouse & Co. (Atlas Forge) Ltd. was apparently originally out of Dudley but then moved to their Atlas Works in Old Hill, Staffordshire, just to the west of Birmingham. They made hammers of all types. The company was acquired by Footprint Tools which was in turn bought by Visa hand tools. In 2009, G. Gibson & Company bought the hammer division of Footprint Tools. The hammers continue to be made by Gibson at Barrowby Lane in Garforth, north of Sheffield.